“Harris, that’s not necessary,” I said.
“Well, looky what we have here.” He pulled out a small folded piece of paper and held it up between his fingers. “Not a spy, huh?”
“Let me see that,” I said, snatching it from him. I unfolded the paper, unable to read the markings written on it. They appeared to be some kind of shorthand. There was also a crude map drawn in the corner. My stomach sank as I handed the paper to Diego.
“She’s a snitch,” Harris said. “I told ya. You gotta kill her. She’ll report our position.”
I walked a few paces away, needing to think this through. “There’s gotta be another way.” I turned back and tried to find help in Diego’s eyes, but he shook his head.
“Major, I know this is difficult decision, but if she is spy, then you cannot let her go.”
“So even you agree with them now?” My head was about to explode. “I am not about to kill a girl, no matter if she’s a snitch or not! I won’t do it.”
Henry walked over to me and put a hand on my shoulder. “Matt, you don’t have to do it yourself.”
“I won’t order someone else to do it. That’s just as good as doing it myself.”
“You heard Diego. We can’t just let her go.”
I shook off his hand and walked back to the girl. She stared back at me in defiance. “You speak English?” Nothing. “You know what we’re talking about, don’t you?” Nothing.
Anger swelled in my chest, and I shouted curses to the sky. I turned back to the three of them. “I will not kill her.”
They looked at each other without saying a word.
“I’ll come up with a solution,” I said. “Just give me a few minutes.”
I paced back and forth, weighing my options. Killing her was off the table. Releasing her wouldn’t work. Taking her with us was out. I could think of only one possibility, and it still put all of my men at risk. But it was the only option my conscience could live with.
“All right, here’s what we’re going to do,” I said. “Harris, go back to camp and get the men started on packing up. We’re moving out now. We’ll discuss which direction after I rejoin you. Diego and Henry, we’re going to blindfold her and walk her at least two kilometers from here. Then you’ll tie her loose enough to be able to work herself free after some time, and we’ll be long gone by then.”
None of them looked enthusiastic about this plan. Harris threw his hands up and mumbled that we’d regret this. Diego gave me his usual, “Sí, Major.”
Henry said nothing, but he went to work blindfolding the young woman. After Harris was gone, I walked over to him to help. “I don’t know what else to do,” I said. “Henry, I can’t kill her.”
“I know,” he said. “Honestly, I couldn’t either. We’ll just have to be on our guard more so than usual until we get out of the area.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Ruby
September, 1945
Hanceville, Alabama
I spent the next several days soaking up every second of my time with Mother, Asa, Matthew, and Hope. Hope was enthralled with the animals around the farm. Each morning, Matthew would carry her on his shoulders down to the pens and let her do some chores before breakfast. She tossed feed to the chickens, helped dump the slop for the pigs, and insisted on petting the mules. She even tried to milk the cow, but preferred standing by Asa and receiving a few squirts in her mouth instead.
When they returned, Mother and I would have breakfast on the table, and Hope would entertain us with stories of what the animals had been doing all night while we slept. The pigs were especially mischievous, digging holes under the fence and holding parties for the mice. And each morning Hope would ask, “Momma, can I go out tonight and see them?”
“No, sweetie,” I’d say. “If they know you’re there, they’ll just act like regular animals, and then they won’t get to have their fun.”
She’d frown and think this over. “All right, then.”
After breakfast, Matthew spent the rest of the morning with Asa in his workshop. Hope would trudge around with me, her shoulders slumped, as I tried to get her to help with washing floors and windows, preparing food for dinner, and doing the laundry. She was definitely not enthusiastic about doing the “girls’ jobs,” as she called them. I couldn’t blame her, and I remembered how much I’d hated those chores when I was a little girl too.
Just after midday, Hope would go out on the porch and play, waiting for Matthew and Asa to come to the house for dinner. I would sit in the rocking chair and watch her play with Velveteen and Skin Horse, while she kept one eye on the barn the entire time.
One afternoon after we’d been there about four days, she came over and climbed up into my lap. “Momma, I tink Daddy is becoming weal here,” she said.
I rested my chin on her head. “What makes you think that?”
“He’s getting very dirty.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle. “You’re right about that. He is getting very dirty.”
“And he smells bad too.”
“We should tell him to take a bath tonight.”
At that moment, Matthew and Asa came out of the barn, and Hope jumped from my lap. She leapt off the porch, stumbling, but catching herself, and took off running across the yard toward them. As soon as he saw her coming, Matthew’s face broke into a wide smile, and my heart nearly burst with joy. This was how we were always meant to be.
***
That evening, after Hope was tucked into bed, Matthew came into our bedroom newly shaven and smelling as fresh as spring. He held his arms out to his sides and did a slow turn.
“Well, what do you think?”
I closed the book I’d been reading and climbed out of the bed. I walked over to him and inspected him from head to foot. “My goodness. A haircut and everything.”
“Your mother cut my hair while you were reading to Hope.”
“What’s the occasion?”
“A little bunny told me earlier that you wanted me to take a bath because I smell bad.”
We shared a laugh, and he pulled me close. I pushed up on my tiptoes and kissed him. “Thank you,” I said. “Not for the bath, even though that’s nice. But thank you for coming here with me. This is the happiest I’ve been…well, I suppose it’s the happiest I’ve ever been.”
“Do you realize you spent most of your early years dreaming of getting out of this town and finding adventure? And here you are, content to live the quiet life.”
“I think we’ve both had enough adventure to last ten lifetimes. All I want now is to be at peace. I want you to be at peace.”
“You think that’s still possible? There’s so much we don’t know about your future.”
“We’re not guaranteed tomorrow anyway.” I slid his shirt over his head and ran my hands over his chest. “Let’s just enjoy tonight.”
He bent down and lifted me into his arms, carrying me over to the bed. “I think we can manage that, at least for one night.”
***
The next day, I once again did my best to convince Hope that sweeping the floors was a good thing. She twisted her sweet little face into a thoughtful expression. “Momma, dey just get dirty again.”
I could see the smile on Mother’s face as she cleaned the breakfast dishes. No doubt she enjoyed watching me deal with a little version of myself. “I know it will get dirty again. But dirt doesn’t belong inside the house. It should stay outside. So we have to sweep it up and take it back out. Now, hold the dustpan for me.”
Hope did her best to hold the dustpan, for about five seconds. Then she dropped it and pointed to her feet. “Momma, it’s my shoes!”
“What’s your shoes?”
“Where the dirt is! It’s on my shoes.” She plopped down on the floor and stuck her foot in the air. “See?”
“I do see. What are we going to do about it? I think we have to throw them out!” I swooped her up in my arms, and she squealed with laughter. “Out they go!” I sh
outed, as I marched her to the front door. I swung it open and carried her onto the porch, walked over to the edge, and pretended I was about to toss her into the yard.
She gripped my arms, laughing and screaming at the same time. “No, Momma! I’m not dirty!”
I stopped swinging her and plopped into the rocking chair, cradling her in my arms. I tickled her once more, just to have that sweet laugh fill my soul. Then I hugged her close. “I would never throw you out,” I said.
“I know.” She wrapped her arms around my neck. “We’re just having fun.”
While I continued hugging her, I caught sight of the dust kicking up behind a car coming down the long driveway. I jumped up from the rocking chair and hurried inside with Hope.
“Mother,” I called. “Someone’s here.”
Mother rushed to the living room and peered out the window. “I don’t recognize the car.”
“I’ll take Hope to the bedroom.”
“I’ll go fetch Asa.”
I carried Hope into Mother and Asa’s bedroom, closing the door behind me. I sat Hope on the bed and handed her the picture book she’d been looking at before her nap. “Here, sweetie. I need you to sit quietly and look at your book for a while.”
“But I’m not tired.”
“I know, but we need to sit here quietly, please. It’s very important. Do this for Mommy.”
Her brow furrowed, but she agreed and opened the book. I went to the end of the bed and tried to keep my nerves calm, praying it was nothing. Just a neighbor passing by, or someone needing Asa’s services. I was both surprised and disappointed that fear had come over me so quickly. Hadn’t I come here to stop all this hiding? I was such a coward.
***
Matthew
Asa was just letting me rasp the last hoof of the mule he’d been shoeing that morning when Mrs. Graves hurried into the barn with a worried expression. I dropped the mule’s hoof and the rasp, my heart immediately racing.
“Where’s Ruby and Hope?” I demanded before she could utter a word.
“In the house,” she said. “They’re fine. There’s a man here that says he needs to see Matthew.”
“Who is it?” Asa asked.
“He says his name is Stanley Pierce. You went to see him last week?”
I leaned against the nearest post and let out a slow breath, trying to bring my heart rate under control. I could already feel the effects sparking in my vision. “Yes, I went to see him on Thursday about Ruby’s case. I’m supposed to meet with him at his office tomorrow morning. Why would he come out here?”
“Maybe he has news,” Asa said. He bent over and picked up the rasp I’d dropped. “Let’s not jump to conclusions.”
“I don’t like it,” I said. “I don’t trust this guy yet. Especially now. I never told him where he could find me.”
Asa dropped the rasp into his toolbox. “Well, let’s go hear what he has to say.”
I took another deep breath, and my heart slowed just a bit. The last thing I needed was another breakdown right now. I walked around Asa and Mrs. Graves as we approached the front of the house. Stanley, who’d been leaning against the hood of the car, came to me with an outstretched hand and a smile.
“Morning folks!” he said.
I shook his hand firmly. “I thought I was coming to meet with you tomorrow morning.”
“Yes, well, I got some answers to your questions and figured it would be more discreet if I came to you instead of you coming into town again.”
“How did you know where to find me?”
He let out a chuckle. “Oh, that wasn’t too hard. I figured you’d be staying with Ruby’s folks. Now, shall we get down to business? We have a lot to discuss.”
Mrs. Graves went up the steps and opened the front door. “I’ll put on some more coffee.”
“Wonderful,” Stanley said. “I’ll just grab my files and we’ll get started.”
I glanced at Asa, who also looked unnerved by this kid. He wasn’t even wearing a tie. What kind of lawyer was he?
As Stanley spread his folders on the table, and Mrs. Graves went to work at the stove, I went into the bedroom to retrieve Ruby. As her terrified eyes met mine, I tried to put her at ease. “It’s the lawyer I went to see last week. He has some information about your case.”
She let out a sigh of relief and dropped onto the edge of the bed. Hope stood up and hopped a couple of times toward me. “Daddy, you’re done already?”
“No, sweetie. But Mommy and I need to talk to someone for a few minutes. Can you stay in here with your book?”
She jumped off the bed at me, forcing me to catch her. “I don’t wanna look at my book. I wanna play with you.”
“I can’t right now. You’ll have to wait in here a little longer.”
Her little pout turned into a frown. Ruby stood and took Hope from my arms. “I thought you were going to meet him at his office tomorrow.”
“So did I. Listen, I’m not sure about this fella. He seems a bit…inexperienced. Maybe you should stay in here.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. Just in case we have to make a run for it. The fewer people who see you, the better.”
She put Hope on the bed and came over to me, placing her hands on my chest. “Look, we’re both a bit jumpy. But let’s not overreact. We just have to trust that God is still in control. We are not making a run for it anymore. Just breathe. Everything will be fine.” She took my hand and turned back to Hope. “Mommy and Daddy won’t be long. Stay in here.”
Hope rested her chin in her hands and whined. “Yes, ma’am.”
Ruby and I walked out of the bedroom together and over to the table, where Stanley had already taken a seat. The lawyer stood and stuck out his hand. “You must be Ruby.”
She shook it and gave him a tight smile. “And you must be Mr. Pierce.”
“Please, call me Stanley.”
Ruby shot me a quick glance that said everything I’d already been thinking about this guy. I took the seat next to her at the table, noticing the four piles of folders. “So let’s have it,” I said. “Start at the beginning and spell everything out.”
Stanley pulled the chair away from the table and stood in its place. He pointed to the first stack of folders. “First of all, we’ll start with Ruby’s current situation. These folders contain everything to do with her case. In 1940, Solicitor Charles Garrett and the Sheriff’s department were investigated on corruption charges. The result of this investigation was that every conviction between the years 1935 and 1939 was re-evaluated. Almost all of the convictions were vacated, including Ruby’s.”
“What does that mean exactly?” I asked.
“It means that, officially, Ruby’s trial never happened. The new solicitor, Mr. Norton, didn’t see the need to retry the case with no defendant present. So, as of right now, she hasn’t been convicted of anything.”
“That’s wonderful,” Mrs. Graves said from the kitchen. She walked toward us with her hands clasped at her chest. “You mean Ruby’s free?”
“Not exactly,” Stanley said. “She was indicted and arrested. Technically speaking, she’s still under that indictment. Mr. Norton can, and most likely will, retry the case once her presence has been established. He was put in place because of his reputation for riding out corruption. He’s fair, but he’ll be eager to make sure there isn’t one hint of anything improper.”
“Still,” Asa said. “That means we have a shot at Ruby being exonerated. Praise the Lord.”
I wasn’t so optimistic. “So what you’re saying is that we have to go through that whole trial again?”
“I wish it were that simple,” Stanley said. “Let me continue. Not only is Ruby still under indictment for the murder charge, she could also be charged with a whole list of other crimes involving her escape and flight from justice.”
“But if her conviction never happened, then what followed wouldn’t have happened,” Mrs. Graves said, taking a seat beside Asa.
> “It doesn’t work that way. At the time, the state had legally imprisoned Ruby, and she illegally fled.” Stanley set down the first group of folders and picked up the second group. “Now let’s talk about what happened during the escape. There’s a lot of missing information on that event, and a lot of rumor. It was one of the key events investigated in the corruption scandal. Here’s what I know. During the transfer of Miss Graves to the State Penitentiary in Wetumpka, where she would await her execution, the Sheriff and Deputy stopped the car to help what appeared to be a couple of men who’d been in a car accident. Instead, it was an ambush by several men, who Sheriff Peterson claimed were Ruby’s uncles, the Kellum brothers. The exact number of assailants was unknown, but Sheriff Peterson and Deputy Frost reported seeing at least three different individuals. In 1939, state officials raided a moonshine operation in Rickwood Caverns belonging to the Kellum brothers. Roy and Eddie Kellum were killed in a shootout.”
Ruby covered her mouth and shook her head. “Oh, Mother. I’m so sorry.”
Mrs. Graves muttered something about foolishness and went back to the kitchen.
Stanley barely paused before continuing. “Thomas was also killed in a shootout with police in 1940. Another Kellum brother, uh, Franklin…was arrested in 1942 on unrelated charges. Apparently he was questioned about the incident involving Ruby, but he never offered up any information. He’s currently in prison, and could still be called on to testify.”
Ruby looked at me with damp eyes. We’d only known her uncles for a short time, but I knew she’d grown to care deeply for them. Of course, given their lawless lifestyle, it was no surprise that three out of four of them had ended up dead.
As Mrs. Graves brought cups of coffee to the table, Stanley turned his attention to me. “Now, Matthew, according to your statement at the time, you were traveling to Wetumpka several minutes behind the sheriff because you…let me see…” He shuffled through the papers in the folder, stopping to read from one. “You were so distraught over Ruby’s sentence, you weren’t thinking clearly. Despite being told by the sheriff to wait a couple of days, you decided to drive to Wetumpka to see if you could see Ruby after she was transferred there. You came upon the scene of the ambush, thought Ruby’s life was in danger, and so decided to get her out of there for her own safety, fully intending to return her to custody. The roads were particularly dangerous due to all the rain, and the car slipped into the river, ending up in Cold Spring. You did everything you could to find Ruby, but never saw her or any evidence that she survived the crash.” Stanley looked up at me with raised eyebrows. “Did I get it all right?”
Abiding Hope: A Novel: Healing Ruby Book 4 Page 28